Le Creuset - Worth it?

[Hippopotas]

Just wondering if it is worth investing in some Le Creuset items or if they aren’t worth it.

I’ve hankered after a Le Creuset casserole dish for years and recently watching more cooking shows and they all seem to use Le Creuset.

Watching with interest…

I just said to my daughter yesterday that I have a Le Creuser cast iron roasting dish that I use at least four times a week and have done for 25 years.

I've got some of their ordinary dishes too and they are no different from generic stuff that you can just buy anywhere.

I have a Sainsbury's cast-iron dish too and I have had that for a couple ofyears and it seems like a fairly good item to me,

I have a casserole dish and find it very heavy to use

I had a le creuset casserole for my 40th as I’ve wanted one for years. I wasn’t disappointed . We now have two as my husband was always using it !

I had one but got rid as it was too heavy for me. I could barely lift the caserole dish up when empty let alone when full and hot.

Have a look at the TK Maxx website - they often stock them. My son has the Sainsbury's shallow casserole dish - it's great.

They are incredibly heavy - if you're heading towards retirement age then I wouldn't recommend them.

Yes I was just going to say TK Maxx too!
They usually have some. Think the TK Maxx ones are either old stock or slightly different to the “official” Le Creuset colours but they’re still nice and much cheaper.

They do last years and have a great warranty but I'd just get a Sainsbury's tbh

*unless I could splash cash around freely then I'd buy one

My mum has a cast iron casserole that she uses mainly as a saucepan, every day of the week. That thing must be 40 years old now, and looks great. I've got two similar ones from Sainsbury and Tescos and find they burn at the bottom, which is really irritating. I do have some Le Creuset ceramic roasting dishes, but tbh I wouldn't recommend them. I would get their cast iron range though.

@justthecat

I have a casserole dish and find it very heavy to use

The heaviness alone puts me off. Any decent stuff thats light?

They are heavy but brilliant in all other respects. I have 3 in different sizes - use them the whole time.

I really love the casserole dish, honestly the same stew cooked in this tastes 10 times better than a stew cooked in my old wilko one (which incidentally exploded so I would not recommend!).

However I've just given my set of saucepans away as I just found them too heavy to safely hold.

I had a few for wedding presents 28 years ago, use them several times a week and they're all in great condition.

I don't have a Le Creuset, but have a Chasseur casserole dish, which is similar (little bit cheaper maybe). I've had it for almost a decade, and I cook with it all the time - most days in the winter, a couple of times a week in summer. I fricking love it, and it's versatility means the price per use has been pretty low.

A cast iron casserole with a lid is really useful and probably a roasting/lasagne/traybake dish. Whether it needs to be Le Creuset is another matter but if you fancy treating yourself it would last forever.
I don't see the point of a full set of saucepans and matching accessories, plenty of other brands do that job better.

If you have an induction hob cast iron works a treat.

I have a Le Creuset and a Sainsbury's copy. Save yourself the money and buy the Sainsbury's range.

They’re very heavy but I absolutely love cooking with them; I have set of 3 LC saucepans, 2 shallow casserole (use as frying pans mainly), 2 large oval and one giant round casserole.

They’re very versatile going from hob to oven, make one pot cooking, batch cooking, feasts and roasts easy and they look great.

I’d say the only downside is the weight (& price).

You need to be a weightlifter to use one.

Honestly I’d rather just buy something cheaper.

I haven't got a Le Crueset casserole dish but I do have soup bowls, side plates and a mug and I love them!!! My soup tastes so much better in my Le Crueset!

I also found them too heavy.

We've got a mix of Sainsburys and Le Creuset and I'd recommend the Sainsburys version assuming it's the required size

I have one that was my grandparents and it’s wonderful. It’s lasted them and me a good 35+ years

I also have a set of pans a friend from work got in Germany during the early 80s when her husband was posted there. She got two sets and when I got my first house gave me the unused set as a gift. Beautiful

The Ikea copy is also great!